Unemployment data strengthens expectations of tightening, Apple slumps again, Nasdaq falls for the fourth consecutive time, Pinduoduo briefly drops more than 8%.

The number of initial jobless claims announced by the US Department of Labor unexpectedly dropped to 216,000 last week, reaching a new low in over six months. The number of continued jobless claims also hit a new low in over seven months. The unemployment data indicates that the labor market still has resilience. This comes after the strong expansion of the service sector reflected in the ISM Non-Manufacturing Index announced on Wednesday, further strengthening market expectations of tightening by the Federal Reserve.

Recent economic data has reignited concerns in the market about further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve this year and the possibility of maintaining higher interest rates for a longer period. Most US stock indices continue to decline. Investors are concerned about the sales prospects of iPhones in China, leading to another sharp drop in the stock price of Apple, the company with the highest market capitalization. Technology stocks have been dragging down the overall market for several days. As the release of the iPhone 15 coincides with the intense competition from the recently popular Huawei Mate 60, there have been reports that iPhones are being banned in certain situations.

Mobile chip giant Qualcomm suffered a heavy blow. In addition to the news about iPhones, the predictions made by Apple's "prophet" Ming-Chi Kuo, as mentioned in the China Fund Report, also had a negative impact. He predicts that due to Huawei's adoption of new Kirin chips, Qualcomm's shipments of SoCs to Chinese smartphone brands will decrease by at least 50 to 60 million units next year compared to this year, and will continue to decrease in the following years. In order to maintain its market share in China, Qualcomm may start a price war as early as the fourth quarter of this year, thereby hurting its own profits.

Chinese concept stocks are accelerating their decline. After being accused of fraud by the short-selling institution Grizzly Research, Pinduoduo's intraday decline exceeded 8% at one point. However, some industry insiders believe that the level of this report is too low to be worth refuting.

After the release of the unemployment data, US Treasury bond prices fell and yields reached a daily high, but the trend was not sustained and yields continued to decline afterwards. During the midday session, John Williams, one of the top officials of the Federal Reserve, stated that he maintains an open attitude towards whether to raise interest rates again, and that interest rate decisions must rely on data. As a result, US bond yields accelerated their decline, collectively hitting a daily low.

The US economic data remains robust, and the US dollar index continues to rise, causing most non-US currencies to fall. The onshore Chinese yuan once approached 7.33 against the US dollar, reaching its lowest level since the end of 2007, while the offshore Chinese yuan lost the 7.34 level during intraday trading for the first time in three weeks. After Japanese officials issued a warning against speculation in the foreign exchange market on Wednesday, the Japanese yen continued to hit a new low in ten months, but rebounded during intraday trading. Investors continue to pay attention to whether the Japanese government will intervene.

In the commodity market, under the pressure of a stronger US dollar, gold continues to decline, despite the significant reduction of over 6.3 million barrels in US crude oil inventories announced by the US Department of Energy last week. International crude oil prices have turned downward during intraday trading, moving away from the nearly ten-month high reached earlier this week. US oil ended its longest consecutive rally in over four years, while Brent oil closed below the $90 level for the first time in the past three days. On the other hand, European natural gas, which has been fluctuating due to the risk of strikes at Chevron's Australian plant, performed the best. Natural gas prices plummeted on Wednesday due to a one-day delay in the strike at Chevron's liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Australia. Chevron's negotiations with the union on Thursday failed to reach an agreement, causing gas prices to rebound significantly.

Nasdaq and S&P Hit Over One-Week Lows, Apple Drops Over 6% in Two Days, Chip Stocks and Chinese Stocks Underperforming the Market, European Stocks Experience Longest Consecutive Decline in Five Years

The three major U.S. stock indices opened lower. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell more than 1% at the opening, and when it hit a new daily low in early trading, the Nasdaq fell nearly 1.7%, the S&P 500 Index fell nearly 0.8%, and the decline narrowed at midday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average initially fell more than 90 points, but turned higher in early trading and rose nearly 118 points when it hit a new daily high at midday.

In the end, the three indices did not collectively decline for the first time this week. The Nasdaq fell 0.89% to 13,748.83 points, marking its fourth consecutive trading day of decline and falling below the 50-day moving average. The S&P fell 0.32% to 4,451.14 points, continuing its downward trend for the third trading day this week, and both the Nasdaq and the S&P hit new lows since Monday, August 28. The Dow rose 57.54 points, or 0.17%, to 34,500.73 points, breaking the two-day consecutive decline since its low on August 25.

Small-cap stocks, mainly value stocks, represented by the Russell 2000, fell 0.99%, underperforming the market and hitting a new low since August 25 for the third consecutive day. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index fell 0.73%, hitting a new low since Monday, August 28 for the second consecutive day.

On Thursday, major U.S. stock indices opened lower, narrowed their losses at midday, and only the Dow turned higher during the trading session.

Among the major sectors of the S&P 500, five of them declined on Thursday. The IT sector, which includes Apple and chip stocks, fell nearly 1.6%, leading the decline for the second consecutive day, with daily declines exceeding 1%. The declines in the materials, industrial, financial, and healthcare sectors ranged from 0.2% to 0.5%. Among the six sectors that rose, utilities led the way with an increase of nearly 1.3%, followed by real estate, which is sensitive to interest rates, with a 0.7% increase. Non-essential consumer goods, represented by Amazon, rose 0.5%, and communication services, represented by Google, rose 0.1%.

Leading tech stocks fell across the board during the trading session. Tesla fell more than 2% in early trading and closed down nearly 0.2%, marking its second consecutive day of decline. Among the FAANMG six major tech stocks, Apple experienced a decline of about 3.6% on Wednesday, the largest drop since August 4. Apple initially fell 5.1% during the trading session, with a two-day intraday decline of up to 7%, and closed down more than 2.9%, marking a two-day decline since August 24 and a total decline of about 6.4%, resulting in a market value loss of $190 billion. By the closing bell, Microsoft fell about 0.9% and Netflix fell about 0.6%, both continuing to move away from their highs since August 1 and July 19, respectively. On the other hand, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, and Amazon, which fell more than 1% at the opening, turned higher in early trading, with Alphabet closing up 0.6% and Amazon up 1.8%. Alphabet bid farewell to its low since August 28, which it hit on Wednesday, and Amazon approached its high since August 14, which it hit last Friday.

Apple experienced its largest two-day decline in a year, falling below the 200-day moving average on Thursday.

Overall, chip stocks continued to decline, underperforming the broader market. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index and the semiconductor industry ETF SOXX both dropped more than 3% in early trading, closing down about 2% and 2.3% respectively. After CEO Huang Renxun sold a total of approximately 89,100 shares of stock options within three days, NVIDIA fell more than 4% in early trading and closed down 1.7%. iPhone supplier Qualcomm dropped more than 7.2%, while another Apple supplier, Micron Technology, fell about 1.9% and closed down nearly 0.8%. AMD dropped more than 2% after Barclays downgraded its rating from overweight to hold due to weak fundamentals and a longer-than-expected recovery time. Seagate Technology fell nearly 11%, while Intel rose more than 3.2%, leading the Dow Jones Industrial Average with nine consecutive days of gains, reaching a new high since July last year.

AI concept stocks all declined. After the company's post-market announcement that it expects a larger operating loss for the current fiscal year and a delayed profitability timeline, C3.ai (AI), which has been questioned about its ability to seize the AI boom, opened more than 11% lower and closed down more than 12%. In early trading, BigBear.ai (BBAI) fell nearly 6%, SoundHound.ai (SOUN) fell 2.9%, and Palantir (PLTR) and Adobe (ADBE) narrowed most of their intraday declines, closing down nearly 0.6% and 0.3% respectively.

Popular Chinese concept stocks underperformed the broader market, declining for three consecutive days. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index (HXC) fell about 4.9% in early trading and closed down about 4%. The Chinese concept ETFs KWEB and CQQQ both closed down 4.2% and 3.8% respectively.

Among Chinese concept stocks, at the close of trading, Qudian fell more than 17%, Dada fell more than 9%, and Pinduoduo, which was targeted by Grizzly Research, fell more than 8%, marking its largest intraday decline since March 20, closing down 4.9%. After announcing the suspension of client downloads for the new game "Shining! Handsome Girl" due to technical upgrades, Bilibili fell more than 8% and closed down more than 6%. At the close of trading, Xiaopeng Motors fell more than 7%, while Alibaba, JD.com, and NIO fell more than 4%. Baidu and Li Auto fell more than 3%, Tencent fell 3%, and NetEase fell more than 1%.

Banking stocks collectively underperformed the broader market for two consecutive days. The overall banking industry index, the KBW Bank Index (BKX), closed down 1.2%, marking a three-day decline to its lowest level since August 22. The KBW Nasdaq Regional Banking Index (KRX) closed down 1.2%, and the regional bank stock ETF, SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE), fell nearly 1.4%, both marking a three-day decline to their lowest level since July 11. Most major banks closed lower, with Citigroup and Wells Fargo falling over 1%, JPMorgan and Bank of America dropping more than 0.9%, Morgan Stanley down nearly 0.4%, and Goldman Sachs up nearly 0.3%. Among regional banks, Pacific Western Bancorp (PACW) fell 3% at the close, Zions Bancorporation (ZION) dropped over 2%, Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL) and KeyCorp (KEY) both fell over 1%.

In terms of volatile stocks, Verint Systems (VRNT), a customer relationship analysis company, fell 19.4% due to lower-than-expected second-quarter earnings and revenue. ChargePoint Holdings (CHPT), an electric vehicle infrastructure company that announced a 10% workforce reduction and lower-than-expected second-quarter revenue, dropped 10.8%. Align Technology (ALGN), a dental medical equipment company, fell 7.8% after announcing the acquisition of 3D printing company Cubicure for 79 million euros. Rollins (ROL), a pest control services company, fell 6.2% after announcing a secondary offering of $1.35 billion. On the other hand, WestRock (WRK), which is reportedly close to acquiring European paper packaging giant Smurfit Kappa and creating a global paper and packaging giant worth about $20 billion, initially rose nearly 7% and closed up 4.2%.

In European stocks, the pan-European stock index fell for the seventh consecutive trading day, the longest losing streak since February 2018, due to Germany's industrial orders falling more than expected on a month-on-month basis, slower GDP growth in the eurozone, and concerns about iPhone sales. The STOXX Europe 600 index hit a new low since August 25 for two consecutive days. Major European stock indices had mixed performance, with Spain, Germany, and Italy falling for seven, six, and two consecutive days, respectively, while the UK stock market rebounded after three consecutive days of decline, and the French stock market barely halted its six-day decline.

On Thursday, 12 European stock sectors closed lower, with the basic resources sector, which includes mining stocks, leading the decline with a drop of over 2.2%, followed by the technology sector, which fell nearly 2%, and other sectors falling less than 0.9%. Among the seven sectors that rose, defensive sectors such as utilities and healthcare increased by nearly 1.4% and 1.2% respectively, while other sectors rose by less than 0.6%.

In terms of individual stocks, several chip stocks experienced significant declines: French-listed Apple supplier STMicroelectronics fell 4.1%, while ASML, BE Semiconductor, and ASM International, listed in the Netherlands, dropped by approximately 3.8%, 3.7%, and 3.1% respectively. Infineon Technologies, listed in Germany, fell by about 2.7%. Luxury stocks, which are heavily reliant on the Chinese market, also experienced widespread declines, with Kering falling nearly 1.3%, LVMH dropping 1% and hitting a new low since January 3. After the release of the unemployment data, the yield on the 10-year US Treasury bonds, which had been rising for several days, fell on Thursday. The release of the US business data before the stock market opening failed to sustain the rise in yields, and the US stock market turned downward during trading hours, ending its three-day rally.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bonds briefly rose after the release of the US unemployment data, reaching over 4.30% and hitting a high not seen since August 23. It rose more than 2 basis points during the day. However, after the opening of the US stock market, the yield began to decline, and by the end of the bond market, it had fallen to about 4.24%, a decrease of about 4 basis points during the day.

The yields on various maturities of US Treasury bonds fell during Thursday's trading, but overall, they continued to rise over the three-day period.

After the release of the unemployment data, the yield on the 2-year US Treasury bonds, which is more sensitive to interest rate expectations, briefly rose and even surpassed 5.03%, reaching a high not seen since August 29. It broke through the 5.0% level for two consecutive days and rose more than 1 basis point during the day. However, it began to decline after Williams' speech, and the US stock market fell below 4.95% at the end of the day, reaching a new low. By the end of the bond market, the yield was about 4.95%, a decrease of about 7 basis points during the day.

The US dollar index, which tracks the exchange rate of the US dollar against six major currencies including the euro, reached a new high in nearly six months for three consecutive days. The onshore renminbi hit a new low in over fifteen years, and the yen rebounded during trading hours after hitting a ten-month low.

The ICE US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the exchange rate of the US dollar against a basket of currencies including the euro, experienced several declines during the Asian trading session, approaching a daily low of around 104.80. It fell by less than 0.1% during the day. European stocks completely reversed their downward trend at the beginning of the trading session, and US stocks rose above 105.00 for the second consecutive day before the market opened. In the early trading session, US stocks rose above 105.10. After reaching new highs on two consecutive days since March 15 and hitting an intraday high not seen since March 10, it rose by nearly 0.3% during the day. At the close of trading on Thursday, the US dollar index remained above 105.00, rising nearly 0.2% during the day. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the US dollar against ten other major currencies, also rose nearly 0.2%, reaching a new high since March 9th on Wednesday and surpassing the high since March 8th. Both the US dollar index and the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index have risen for three consecutive days after a two-day rally on Monday, indicating a cumulative increase for the eighth consecutive week.

The onshore Chinese yuan (CNY) against the US dollar closed at 7.3279 at 16:30 Beijing time, down 195 points from the previous trading day's official closing price. Afterwards, the decline continued to expand, with the US stock market approaching 7.33 during Thursday's trading session, hitting a new low since December 2007. At 3:00 am Beijing time on September 8th, the overnight trading session closed at 7.3297, down 113 points from the previous overnight closing.

The offshore Chinese yuan (CNH) against the US dollar hit a daily high of 7.3190 in the early Asian session, rising 18 points during the day, but overall maintaining a downward trend. The US stock market fell to 7.3459 before the market opened, dropping 251 points during the day and more than 200 points for two consecutive days. It was the first time since August 17th that it fell below 7.34 during trading hours, hitting a new low since November 3rd last year, approaching the low point of 7.35 set on August 17th.

At 4:59 am Beijing time on September 8th, the offshore Chinese yuan against the US dollar was reported at 7.3422 yuan, down 214 points from the New York closing on Wednesday, marking a four-day decline.

Among other non-US currencies, the Japanese yen rebounded after hitting a ten-month low during the trading session, with the US dollar against the yen rising to 147.87 in the early Asian session, hitting a new high since early November last year. It rose more than 0.1% during the day but fell back after a decline in the Asian session, with the US stock market falling below 147.10 and hitting a new low during the day, down about 0.4%. The euro and the pound continued to hit new lows since June, with the euro against the US dollar and the pound against the US dollar falling below 1.0690 and 1.2450 respectively in the early US stock market session, hitting lows since June 7th and June 8th.

Bitcoin (BTC) fell below $25,700 in the early US stock market session, hitting a daily low, but then rebounded. It approached $26,000 during the midday session, rising more than $300 and more than 1% from the low point, and remained above $25,900 at the close of the US stock market. It has risen by about 0.9% in the past 24 hours, but has not approached the low point since August 17th when it fell below $25,400.

Crude oil fell from its highest level in nearly ten months, and US oil ended its longest consecutive daily gain in over four years, while European natural gas rebounded by nearly 8% during the trading session. International crude oil futures remained generally bearish after a morning session dip in the Asian market. The US stock market saw multiple short-term rebounds during the morning session, but hit a daily low at noon. US WTI crude oil fell to $86.39, while Brent crude oil fell to $89.46, both experiencing a decline of about 1.3% during the day.

Ultimately, crude oil experienced its first weekly decline this week. WTI October crude oil futures, which had hit a new high since November last year for three consecutive days until Wednesday, fell by 0.76% to $86.87 per barrel, ending the longest consecutive daily increase since January 2019, which lasted for nine days. Brent November crude oil futures, which had hit a new high since November last year for four consecutive days until Wednesday, fell by 0.75% to $89.92 per barrel, marking the first time in the past three days that it closed below $90.

US WTI crude oil fell during Thursday's trading session, dropping more than 1% at one point.

European natural gas, which had experienced a sharp decline of about 9.8% and closed lower on Wednesday, rebounded strongly, rising nearly 8% during the session. UK natural gas futures rose by 5.54% to 79.48 pence per therm, moving away from the low reached on Wednesday, July 19, and rising more than 7.8% during Thursday's session. TTF benchmark Dutch natural gas futures on the European continent rose by 5.41% to 32.755 euros per megawatt-hour, moving away from the closing low reached on Wednesday, August 8, and rising more than 7.7% during Thursday's session.

US gasoline and natural gas futures both rose. NYMEX October gasoline futures rose by 0.83% to $2.6230 per gallon, marking a two-day consecutive increase and continuing to reach a high not seen since August 25. NYMEX October natural gas futures rose by 2.75% to $2.5790 per million British thermal units, rebounding from a four-day consecutive decline and reaching a high not seen since August 23.

London copper falls for two consecutive days to a two-week low, gold declines for three consecutive days, hitting a two-week low

London base metal futures saw mixed performance on Thursday. London nickel fell for four consecutive days to a one-week low. London copper and London tin fell for two consecutive days, with London copper hitting a two-week low and London tin continuing to fall from its high point of over three weeks. London zinc, which fell for three consecutive days, and London lead, which fell on Wednesday, rebounded and approached the high points they had reached nearly four weeks and seven months ago, respectively. London aluminum, which remained flat on Wednesday, rose slightly and remained close to the one-week low reached on Tuesday.

New York gold futures saw temporary rebounds during trading sessions in European and US stock markets, but these rebounds were not sustained. The European stock market hit a daily low of $1940.3, and gold fell by 0.2% during the day.

Ultimately, COMEX December gold futures fell by 0.09% to $1942.50 per ounce, marking the second consecutive day of closing at a low not seen since August 25 and the third consecutive day of decline.

Spot gold fell below $1920 on Thursday, giving up last week's gains.